Survey of tubeless puncture repair kit experience for a newby

Hi all from steamin' hot BC,

while I've been on-road for nearly 30 years, I haven't repaired any punctures roadside yet,

I've looked at a number of the options discussed in the forums, and the Youtuber video . . .

the sticky rope kit approach seems well favoured, interesting as I'd have expected that a fancy modern rubber plug with a big enough head would have been successful,

so can folks please respond with confirmation of their success with roadside puncture repairs - is the sticky rope really the best option? are rubber plugs not a good option?

secondly, what's been best for re-inflation? is there a good compressed gas approach, or just pump it up?

cheers all,

Peter

flat repair

'Stop and Go' kit. Carrying it for ~20yrs. Saved my butt 4-5 times including last month when a chisel made a big hole in my PR-III. Combined with the "Cycle Pump" inflating kit and you shan't be stranded. (tubeless tires only) -no affiliation, etc.

I have used the Stop and Go rubber mushroom plug kit. I have used the sticky worm type plugs. I have used the worms and glue kit from Best Rest products. I carry the Best Rest Products kit now as I find it the most reliable. See: https://bestrestproducts.com/

The Stop and Go kits are intended to have the plugs installed without glue. I have recently applied glue to the hole (not the plug which would gum up the tool) with better success for not leaking.

As for inflation get a decent 12 volt pump. I carry the Cycle Pump from Best Rest Products. It is very durable and has a warranty. It also was picked as "best" by Motorcycle Consumer News. See: https://bestrestproducts.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/MCNEWS-August-2017-Mini-Compressor-JCW-1.pdf. It isn't cheap but cheap doesn't always get you home.

CO2 and other cartridges don't work for me. The BMW kit had 3 included. It takes at least two to get a tire where you can ride slowly to an air pump. Three will get a modern sized rear tire to 25 pounds, maybe. Sometimes it takes more than one just to find the puncture. Get a pump. If the Cycle Pump is too pricey then a Slime unit from most any auto parts store will usually be OK for very occasional use. But it won't last through many uses like the Cycle Pump will. We travel a lot in the summer and air at gas stations is few and far between and costs a dollar or more just to turn on. So when adding air I use my own pump at the motel or campground. So a solid reliable pump is what I need and use.

And, on the air pump/mini compressor, it really needs to go directly to a battery connection.
OM

FortNine does a comparison that I found informative...

https://youtu.be/Qm6fTWaj3QE

Cap

Cheap sticky ropes work for me, never tried anything else, didn't see any reason too.

I have carried Stop N Go rubber mushrooms and used them a bunch of times. Once I got a bad cut in a rear tire and had to insert two mushrooms to hold enough air so that I could make it home. I’ve never used any glue with them. Based on great comments, I also got a Nealey tire repair kit. The ropes in the Nealey kit are thinner than the typical rope kit, so they go in easy. Now I carry both, belt and suspenders....

I picked up a Harbor Freight air pump years ago. Stripped of all the excess plastic and cut off the cigarette lighter connector and put an SAE connector in its place. The guts of the pump were put into a little plastic food container. I periodically pull it out of the saddle bag and use it to add air to my tires, just to make sure that it is still working.

Nealey tire repair kit and a MotoPump. The Nealey kits are sticky string and an inserter.

https://www.nealeytirerepairkit.com/

Best,
DeVern

I've mostly used sticky strings, about 95% successful on motorcycle, car, truck, and tractor tires. I've only had two repairs that subsequently leaked. Picked up a screw in a brand new PR4 while scrubbing it in at a nearby parking lot, came home with less than a mile on the tire and a leak. That plug eventually developed a slow leak, but only after the tire was below the wear indicators, so I still consider that a success. The second case was a compact tractor turf tire that had more of a slit than a puncture. A plug (or two) would hold for a few weeks and then blow out all at once. Again the tread was thin, so I gave up and bought new tires.

I've used the Stop-N-Go kit, but am not a fan. It is comparatively expensive, the tools are heavy and bulky, and there is nothing but air pressure to seal the plug. I just never really trusted the repair.

I currently prefer the Nealey Mini Tire repair kit. It's easier to use than a generic sticky string, since you don't need the rubber cement. That makes it less messy to install, and there are no worries that the tube of cement dried out since you used it last.

I carry a small Slime pump (no longer made) in the tail section of my RT. It's pretty compact and though it's looking rather beat up, it has worked well for about nine years. It's handy just for changing tire pressure from time to time, something not easily done with CO[SUB]2 [/SUB]cartridges. CO[SUB]2[/SUB] seems to be useful to get enough air in the tire to ride, but you will probably need to find an air pump real soon to top it off. Or carry a pannier full of cartridges.

The only flat I had on a motorcycle was a brand new Michelin 190 rear on my ZX14. I plugged it with sticky string and rode it until the tire wore out.

The Moto Pumps are excellent, I've been using them for over 10 years with excellent results. I've never had to repair a tubeless tire but I have the kit that Moto Pumps sells and the factory kit on my 1100. The video was interesting showing the plugs didn't work as well. If you want to talk tube flats that I can help you with.

Omega Man said:

And, on the air pump/mini compressor, it really needs to go directly to a battery connection.
OM

Click to expand...

Just make sure your battery is fully charged , or your moto is running or you may not be able to start. I've had good luck pumping up using an auto battery, but not with the smaller moto batteries.

Sticky rope with rubber cement. Slime air compressor kit with a powerlet socket wired direct to battery and a powerlet cigarette lighter socket adaptor. The other bikes have cigarette sockets on them. Never had to use it but it's been used several times on other peoples bikes.

I checked out the Nealey tire repair kit someone mentioned earlier. Ordered one and i'm going to put a drywall screw in the kit for reaming out the hole. Thanks for the tip.

Timely. I just got back from a long ride on my r1200gs. I carry a small elec. pump and the sticky rope tire plugs. Didn't need them on this trip, thank goodness. But at one point I wanted to add a couple of pounds to my rear tire. It seems to me there is no easy way to access the battery on my bike (or many others) to hook up the pump. As mentioned, you need to be sure the engine is running so you don't run the battery down inflating the tire. Since BMW called for 42 psi, I was also concerned if the small pump would even inflate it that much? I've never used the pump on the BMW, the hose on most of the small pumps I've seen are quite short. I guess I need to practice with it before the next trip. I think I'm going to shop for a small 12-volt lithium ion battery I can carefully store with my tire repair kit. I'd think it would make using the pump and inflating the tire a snap.

PMarinara
A good thing to do is when your getting ready to change a tire is to put a drywall or wood screw in it and plug it at home.
I like the Bacon strips or rope plugs. I also carry a bottle of Slime, that stuff is amazing.
You'll quickly find out out one trick is to ream the hole big enough to get the strips it. Get after it with the reamer.
Got to have a electric pump too, forget the CO2 cartridge's, sometime you need a couple of plug attempts to make it airtight.
Once you've done a couple, you can stop and fix a flat in about 20 mins.
I did 2 last year for people on the road, easy way to make a friend for life!
Nick
1990 K 75 RT

https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=project+farm+tire+sealants

Project Farm reviews tire sealants.
This guy has a cool channel, lots of practical stuff.
Nick
1978 R80/7

Yes use the pump with the engine running, I have killed my battery in the past and it makes a pain in the ass that much bigger.. Pretty easy to wire in a connection to plug in. My pump came with an extension cable so I can reach everywhere easily.

newb question

My 2000 R1100S I bought used has the connector with cap that I plug the Deltran charger directly into. I have used the ammeter probes there to read battery voltage. Am I correct in assuming I can plug the cig plug from one of these pumps in that socket on the bike and run the pump? (engine running)

I always carry an Antigravity Microstart battery, Microstart pump, and Stop N Go plug kit. The battery is for when I or someone else needs a jumpstart and it also powers the pump. Got a wood screw in an 800 mile old rear Dunlop a couple of weeks ago and was back underway in 20 minutes with a fully inflated rear tire, 42 psi.